(1) Field of the Invention
This invention is a solar absorber for use to heat hot water by means of the sun's rays and designed to be mounted on the roofs of buildings, the solar absorber elements being mounted in the form of a pyramid, with the base of the pyramid designed to conform to the contour of a roof. In the first form of my invention, finned copper absorbing elements are connected in series, with the absorber having one heat sensor electrically connected to one water valve and water circulator, with the cold water circulating around the entire absorber. In my modified absorber, the heat absorbing elements are pressed waterway bonded copper, aluminum or stainless steel or alternatively are made of copper tubing bonded to copper or aluminum heat transfer flat surfaces. Each panel is equipped with its own heat sensor which is electrically connected through a control panel to a zone water valve and to a water circulator, so that water is circulating through only those panels which are exposed to the sun.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Most commercially available hot water solar absorbers available for home use are flat plate absorbers. However, in a majority of existing homes, flat bed absorbers are not adaptable to the roof angle or to the north-east-south-west orientation of the building. In homes where the ridge pole of the roof runs in a north-south direction, a conglomeration of odd angle brackets would be required to mount the flat bed absorbers in such a way as to be moderately effective in catching the sun's rays. Most solar contractors do not want to construct these ungainly types of arrangements and very few homeowners would consent to have such ugly structures on their roofs. Further, known types of solar absorbers do not permit the economical installation of these devices on a great many homes.